Consulting people in different ways
Both texts are newly written practice sources about invented people, places or projects.
Text One: An original report about an invented consultation on changes to a market square.
The organisers used three methods to gather views. At a public meeting, 62 people heard the proposals together. Eighteen spoke during the discussion, and several participants developed a shared suggestion about changing delivery times. Other people stayed to listen but did not contribute aloud.
An online questionnaire received 214 responses. Everyone ranked the three proposed plans, while 73 respondents also wrote comments explaining concerns about seating and shelter. The rankings made preferences easy to compare, although the shortest comments gave little indication of why a plan had been chosen.
Finally, 11 people joined a guided walk around the square. The group included market traders and people using pushchairs or wheelchairs. By following the proposed route, they identified a sloping entrance that would be difficult for some visitors to use. The walk produced detailed practical evidence, but it involved far fewer people than the other methods.
The final report combined the findings instead of treating the results from one method as sufficient.
Text Two: An original information table about an invented consultation on alterations to a neighbourhood hall.
| Consultation format | Participation | Evidence collected | Limitation recorded by the organisers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open workshop | 28 people attended; 14 contributed aloud | Participants discussed competing room layouts and agreed a possible compromise | Some attenders listened without speaking |
| Postal choice card | 167 cards were returned; 121 selected a quieter meeting room | A clear preference could be counted | People selected between two options without giving reasons |
| Timed access trial | 15 booked participants moved through the proposed layout | Congestion was observed beside the storage door | Only a small, pre-arranged group took part |
After reviewing both projects, a committee member concluded: "A public meeting is the most useful consultation format."
Synthesise what you learn from both texts about the strengths and limitations of different ways of gathering people's views. Use your synthesis to evaluate the committee member's conclusion.
528 exam-style questions on WJEC GCSE English Language 3.1 Section A (20%) – Reading, covering 3.1.1 Understanding description, narration and exposition texts, 3.1.2 Range of continuous and non-continuous texts, 3.1.3 Short and extended response question types, and 3.1.4 Editing task at word, sentence and text level. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.